County Championship should be cut to 12 games - PCA

Cutting the County Championship from 14 games to 12 is the "only reasonable option" to protect welfare and improve standards, according to the Professional Cricketers' Association (PCA).

A review into the structure of the domestic game, aiming to implement changes next season, is due to conclude in the coming weeks.

A reduction in the T20 Blast from the current system of two groups playing 14 games, to three groups playing 12 games, is set to be agreed.

But the future of the Championship is less clear, with a number of options on the table.

The status quo of 10 teams in the top flight and eight in the second tier could remain. The divisions could be flipped, to eight in Division One and 10 in Division Two. Either structure could include 14 or 12 games per season.

Another option would be to have a 12-team top flight, split into conferences of six, with a second tier of six teams.

The champions would be decided by a play-off between the winners of the two top-tier conferences, with one of the two promotion places from the second tier decided by a play-off between teams finishing second and third.

This system would mean 12 games for every county and a 13th for those involved in play-off matches.

The PCA prefers the conference model, but would also support the traditional divisional structure, as long as either is played over 12 games per county.

It points to research carried out among players, where 83% said the current schedule caused concern for their physical wellbeing and 67% have worries for the mental health.

"The schedule has always been a contentious issue," said PCA chair and Warwickshire seamer Olly Hannon-Dalby.

"The feeling in recent seasons due to ever-increasing intensity of fixtures has led the game to a position where positive action has to be taken immediately and as an opportunity for the game to grow.

"A change in format of the County Championship to 12 league games is the only reasonable option and would breathe new life into what I believe would become the best red-ball competition in the world."

Any change to the domestic structure would have to be approved by 12 of the 18 first-class counties. There are no plans to alter the One-Day Cup, which is played alongside The Hundred in August.

Some counties have already publicly expressed their preferred options.

Surrey and Somerset have supported an eight-team top flight and 10-team second tier, retaining 14 games per season.

Middlesex have backed the status quo: 10 teams in Division One, eight in Division Two and 14 games.

Durham and Lancashire have thrown their weight behind the 12-team top flight, while Worcestershire have supported both the conference and 10-team first division.

In 2022, a high-performance review led by former England captain Andrew Strauss proposed cutting both the Championship and Blast to 10 games each. The review was widely rejected by the counties.

Whereas that review was undertaken by the England and Wales Cricket Board, this latest work has been led by the counties in order to find an optimum set-up for clubs and players.

It was felt now is an opportune time to act for a number of reasons: a new women's professional structure has been implanted and major matches have been allocated to venues for the foreseeable future.

Most importantly, money due from sales of stakes of teams in The Hundred should take financial pressure off the counties.

However, given the two-thirds majority required to enact change, along with the competing priorities and opinions, the status quo could remain simply because a consensus cannot be reached.